Posted by: Bill Hornbeck | August 9, 2009

The strict Law should drive us to Christ

Today’s devotion was Matthew 5:21-22.   
 
21  “You have heard that the ancients were told, ‘YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT MURDER’ and ‘Whoever commits murder shall be liable to the court.’
                                             
22  “But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court; and whoever says to his brother, ‘You good-for-nothing,’ shall be guilty before the supreme court; and whoever says, ‘You fool,’ shall be guilty enough to go into the fiery hell.  Matthew 5:21-22. 

 

The foregoing verse 22 gives us three examples of how our righteousness must surpass that of the scribes and the Pharisees as stated in Matthew 5:20:  “For I say to you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.” 

We can speculate that the scribes and Pharisees viewed themselves as quite righteous, because they thought they obeyed the Ten Commandments.  They may have smugly thought:  “We have not murdered anyone!”. 

But, Jesus gives us these three examples of the strict Law’s requirements.

We may tend to dismiss such a strict teaching by secretly thinking:  “He is kidding?!  Right???  He is exaggerating to make a point.”

No, Jesus is not kidding nor exaggerating.  Notice by the fact that  Jesus gives us three examples, he is emphasizing his prior point that our righteousness must surpass that of the scribes and Pharisees in order to enter the kingdom of heaven. 

Notice that Jesus is also demonstrating by his actions, the importance of His prior words in verse 19.   “Whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.”  Matthew 5:19.

However, we should not leave our comments to these two points:  the Law’s strict requirements and that Jesus practiced what He taught.  This might leave us in a state of hopelessness.  If we can’t obey even the Ten Commandments, then how can we obey the much stricter requirements of the Law?!  If we too often excuse human behavior, and at best are just silent in teaching the Ten Commandments, then how can we teach the strict Law’s requirements as we should?! 

This strict Law should drive us to Christ.  There is no way that we ourselves (through our own strength, knowledge, and willpower) can obey the Law’s strict requirements.  There is no way that we ourselves can teach the Law as we should.  But, there is hope.  “Therefore the Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ, so that we may be justified by faith.”  Galatians 3:24.

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